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Tuesday, September 13, 2016

"The tribunal recently fined comedian Mike Ward $42,000 for telling a joke that some people found offensive."

This Comedian Was Fined $42,000 for Telling a Joke. His Response Was Perfect. - Hit & Run : Reason.com: "It's called the Human Rights Tribunal, but this Canadian government agency could easily be mistaken for the censorship-enforcement arm of an authoritarian country. The tribunal recently fined comedian Mike Ward $42,000 for telling a joke that some people found offensive.
The joke concerned Jeremy Gabriel, a 19-year-old Canadian singer who suffers from Treacher Collins Syndrome, a debilitating disease. Ward's joke was that the constant media coverage of Gabriel overlooks the fact that "he was supposed to die… why isn't he dead yet?" Ward suggests that Gabriel "stole a wish" and is now, in fact, unkillable.
When Gabriel's family heard about the joke, they called the Human Rights Tribunal, according to Spiked magazine. Ward then fought them in court, and lost. He has to pay a $42,000 fine: $35,000 to Gabriel, and $7,000 to Gabriel's mother.
Ward told Spiked magazine that he's appealing the decision. He says that if he ultimately loses the case, he will "just move to Syria or Saudi Arabia or some other country the respects free speech as much as Canada does.""

Brickbat: Keep Quiet - Hit & Run : Reason.com: "A British court has sentenced Stephen Bennett to 12 months probation and 180 hours of community service for posting "grossly offensive" comments on a police website. Local media did not report what those comments were but said one was offensive to Asian women and one was offensive to Muslims."